England takes a grip on the first day of the 3rd test match against Pakistan. England lost their first wicket early and then Middle Order set a sold partnership.
England Take Grip On The First Day
Zak Crawley recorded his first testing century, finishing the day 171 * when England won 332/4 on day one at Southampton.
After England won the throw and settled on a bat, they lost an early wicket when Rory Burns was sacked by Shaheen Afridi in single digits for the third time in four innings that run, causing Crawley to kink in just the fifth round of the game brought.
Along with Dom Sibley, Crawley survived the remainder of a tester opening spell from Pakistan and still managed to keep the scoreboard going at a good speed. The pair added 61 runs in 13.5 overs before Sibley fell to Yasir Shah. Referee Michael Gough decided to give him the leg beforehand, despite leaving the field with the help of technology.
🏴 STUMPS 🇵🇰
— ICC (@ICC) August 21, 2020
A fantastic day for England, who close on 332/4 thanks to 171* from Zak Crawley 🔥 #ENGvPAK pic.twitter.com/bmOXelOIUA
Crawley met free until the mid-1940s. At that point, the Pakistani bowlers switched directions and rolled a line of defense outside his stump. Having taken just 46 balls to hit 45, the No. 3 Englishman had another 34 deliveries by the time he finally addressed his half-century of the last ball before lunch.
After the break, Naseem Shah was in charge of England captain Joe Root, who made a fine move away from the right-hander to take the lead, and Ollie Pope was thrown back by Yasir to leave England 127/4.
Crawley remained largely undisturbed, however, and found good company in Jos Buttler as the couple began rebuilding. The 22-year-old took the lead in the partnership but had to wait to bring up his first ton when he reached tea at 97 * and quickly brought up the landmark after the resumption.
After a relatively calm start to his innings, Buttler hit the road as he overtook 14 runs from Yasir’s 22nd, including two sixes on the floor, producing the hundred partnerships in the process.
A great piece of umpiring 👏 #ENGvPAKpic.twitter.com/jXbzOebf4W
— ICC (@ICC) August 21, 2020
More milestones were ticked off as Buttler passed 50 and Crawley hit 150. The No. 3 crossed Ian Bell’s 167 mark to record the highest individual innings in Southampton in Tests, and one more run secured its own highest first-class score.
Both players were slightly reassured as the stumps neared, but the partnership was able to grow past 200 before the day ended. Crawley finished with 171 * while Buttler will restart at 87 * just 13 runs before his second testing century. .
